Mitsui OSK Lines (MOL) and Tohoku Electric Power have announced the delivery of a coal carrier vessel equipped with the Wind Challenger hard sail wind power propulsion system.
The 235m, 100,422 dwt ship, named Shofu Maru, was built by Oshima Shipbuilding and has now started operations, transporting coal mainly from Australia, Indonesia, and North America as a dedicated vessel for Tohoku Electric Power.
The introduction of the Wind Challenger is expected to reduce GHG emissions by about 5% on a Japan-Australia voyage and about 8% on a Japan-North America West Coast voyage, compared to a conventional vessel of the same type, and contribute to curbing GHG emissions during fuel transportation. The four-tier grp sail is 53m high and about 15m wide.
MOL and Tohoku Electric Power say the companies are continuing to work toward both stable transport of energy resources and reduction of their environmental impact.
